Cordyline obtecta is a widely branching monocot

Monocotyledon

Monocotyledons, also known as monocots, are one of two major groups of flowering plants that are traditionally recognized, the other being dicotyledons, or dicots. Monocot seedlings typically have one cotyledon , in contrast to the two cotyledons typical of dicots...

 tree native to Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...

 (the type locality), and to northern New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. The species name obtecta derives from the Latin obtegere (to conceal, to cover up), alluding to the way the inflorescence barely protruded beyond the leaves in the plant first described.

Distribution

On Norfolk Island, C. obtecta grows in forest on Mt Bates, Mt Pitt, and generally in the National Park. In New Zealand it was first described as C. kaspar and was thought to be restricted to the Three Kings Islands

Three Kings Islands

The Three Kings Islands or Manawa Islands are a group of 13 islands about northwest of Cape Reinga, the northernmost point of the North Island of New Zealand, where the South Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea converge. They measure about 4.86 km² in area...

, 55 km north of the North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

. Later it was found on the North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

 at North Cape, and on Murimotu Island and the Poor Knights Islands

Poor Knights Islands

The Poor Knights Islands are a group of islands off the east coast of the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. They are located to the northeast of Whangarei, and lie offshore half way between Bream Head and Cape Brett. Uninhabited since the 1820s, they are a nature reserve and...

. In 2005, C. kaspar was relegated to synonymy with C. obtecta.

Description

C. obtecta is a cabbage tree up to 10 m tall (generally much less), with a stout trunk trunk 20–30 cm in diameter. It has spreading branches covered with densely clustered stiff leaves that appear in tufts at the tips of the branches. The leaves are 35 to 100 cm long, and 2.5 to 7 cm wide, narrowing towards their bases into short leaf stems about 2.5 to 3.5 cm wide. The leaves droop somewhat as they age. The flowers of C. obtecta are borne in many large, open branched panicles that appear among the leaves. The flowers are each about 1 mm in diameter, and are very strongly scented. The fruit is a spherical berry 4 to 5 mm in diameter, whitish or purplish blue. The bark on the trunk is grey and flaky.

Threats

On Norfolk Island many populations of C. obtecta are threatened outside the national park

Norfolk Island National Park

Norfolk Island National Park is a protected area of 6.50 km² established in 1984 and managed by the Commonwealth of Australia. It comprises two sections, the Mount Pitt section on Norfolk Island in the South Pacific Ocean with an area of 4.60 km² and the neighbouring 1.90 km² Phillip Island, as...

, and it is listed as 'vulnerable

Vulnerable species

On 30 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 9694 Vulnerable species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations.-References:...

' under the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and culturally significant places...

 The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network lists the plant as 'At Risk/Range Restricted'. . It also occasionally hybridises in New Zealand with C. australis, the characteristics of the resultant plants being intermediate to those of the parents.

Cultivation

C. obtecta is an attractive small tree which tolerates full sun but prefers shade when young. It is intolerant of wet conditions and is likely to be sensitive to frost. There are at least two commercially available cultivars which are becoming popular for street planting and for home gardens. 'Green Goddess' (probably of Three Kings origin) has slightly glaucous, matte-surfaced leaves and stiffly upright fruit panicles. 'Emerald Goddess' (probably from Norfolk Island) has glossy grass-green leaves and lax panicles.